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'A Water Park for Mobile': The power of a grassroots social media campaign and what's next

Tammie McCall and a water park for Mobile

Tammie McCall stands in front of the Mobile Civic Center in Mobile, Ala., on August 27, 2014. McCall has been collecting signatures and started a Facebook page "A Water Park for Mobile" to spark interest in building an indoor water park in the the Civic Center. (Sharon Steinmann/ssteinmann@al.com)

Six weeks later, the medical records specialist by day and community champion by night, has garnered more than 9,650 "likes" for her "A Water Park for Mobile" page and roughly 2,400 signatures on a petition from supporters requesting the city conduct a feasibility study on the project.

With plans to take her plan – and petition – to the City Council, though, McCall has been very candid about her desire to reach the broader audience needed to propel the idea from discussion to action.

"I'm trying to get this beyond Facebook...Facebook has been tremendous, but it's limited. I need to reach more people," McCall told AL.com's Michelle Matthews for a corresponding profile on the woman behind the recent grassroots push to lure a water park to the Port City.

’Great equalizer of the Internet’

Johnny Gwin, a self-professed social media junkie as well as partner and creative director with Mobile's Hummingbird Ideas, said McCall's efforts have certainly attracted a tremendous amount of attention in a short period of time, but she can't afford to lose the momentum now.

"The great equalizer of the Internet is that the smallest of us can become a major media player. It makes everyone a citizen activist; one person can derail a million dollar campaign; you can be an activist from your home or office using that megaphone; and although negative (online content) gets more of a response than positive, I like the idea of something that draws us together," he said.

The biggest challenge for a campaign such as McCall's, Gwin said, is catapulting that idea from the fascination and enticement of a Facebook page to the engagement stage, but to date, she's done everything right because an effective social media campaign defines, informs and inspires others to take up a cause. In turn, he offered the following steps to help propel McCall's substantial social media following toward tangible action.

Make the Internet work for her. The Facebook page was created and intended to gauge the level of community support for this proposal, and the sheer numbers indicate that support is strong. Now a simple blog could help her collect email addresses, so that her followers can receive targeted information as the issue evolves and she will have a more reliable means of informing and engaging those supporters.

Conquer the Twitterverse. A well-managed Twitter handle can become an invaluable public relations tool. More importantly, it's an ideal avenue for reaching decision makers – in quick bursts that don't squander valuable time – that can help further the cause.

The Buddy System. Partnering with a for-profit company such as an architect could help her translate this vision into a professional proposal. (To her credit, McCall has openly requested participation from the business community since launching her Facebook page July 18.)

"(McCall) has showed us there's an economically viable product possibility here. Her research is thorough and makes a strong case, so now it's time to bring a plan to the decision makers to help make it happen," Gwin said.

’It has to be profitable and sustainable’

Al Hutchinson, president and chief executive officer of the Mobile Bay Convention and Visitors Bureau, said the proposal works "conceptually" but at this early stage it remains to be seen if the hypothetical attraction could pass muster.

"From a tourism standpoint, it's always important to hear what citizens think could be of value because you want community support, and you need community buy-in, so social media campaigns and other (tools) have value, but they're only one piece of the puzzle," he said, noting he is speaking anecdotally because he is not yet familiar with McCall's efforts.

The other piece of the puzzle, he said, is the feasibility study – which McCall's petition requests – to see if the project could attract enough out-of-town visitors to support it.

"It has to be a viable attraction financially," Hutchinson said. "It has to be profitable and sustainable."

If a feasibility study reveals the plan makes financial sense and funding is available, then the CVB would have one more amenity to promote.

"Obviously, any tourism attraction is appealing to us as an organization, but whether or not a water park would resonate with the community must go through a thorough vetting process first...If all parties decide they're on board and the financing is in place, then we're here to market it and support it," Hutchinson said.

The bottom line for Gwin, however, is that McCall has managed to rally substantial support for a project that absolutely no one was even whispering about six weeks ago.

"How nice to have a citizen who took the time and energy to sit down and give this much of her time and effort because she wants to see something different happen. I like the passion, and I really like the entrepreneurial spirit," he said.